uperstorm sandy. captioning funded by cbs is this is the "cbs morning news" for thursday, december 13th, 2012. good morning, everybody. good to be with you. i'm terrell brown. we begin this morning with the negotiations to avert the so-called fiscal cliff. so far this week, president obama and house speaker john boehner have spoken twice. boehner says differences remain and he's told lawmakers not to make plans for the week after christmas, which means we'll probably be here, too, including susan mcginnis in washington this morning with the latest. susan, good morning to you. >> hi. good morning, terrell. as the white house continue to fail at coming to a conclusion on the budget, this fiscal cliff is not waiting for the end of the year. it's affecting america today.

well, even santa claus is upset. santa claus showed up on capitol hill wednesday, urging congress and the white house to strike a deal to avoid the looming fiscal cliff before christmas. >> it's discouraging that our elected leadership in congress can't come together to get the job done for the american people. >> reporter: both sides say it's putting a damper on the holidays. >> i think it's going to be extremely difficult to get it done before christmas. ? . >> in anticipation, there is no agreement. congressional leaders told lawmakers not to make holiday travel plans. >> we're going to stay here right up until christmas eve, throughout the time and period before the new year because we want to make sure that we resolve this in an acceptable way for the american people. >> president obama and house speaker john boehner continue to talk. >> but we've got serious differences. >> those differences are already affecting americans. fed chairman ben bernanke says just the threat of the fiscal cliff is dragging down the economy. >> it's already affecting business investment and hiring

decisions by creating uncertainty. >> that's unwelcome news for hundreds who lined up at a job fair in new york on wednesday. >> basically i'm looking for anything that pays american dollars. >> ben bernanke says 2013 will bring more jobs and better economic growth but only if congress strikes a deal. now, even if they do strike a deal, some here say the delays have jeopardized the chances of this becoming legislation and passing both houses of congress in time, and there's a question whether speaker boehner will even have enough republican votes to pass any deal they might come, to terrell. >> susan mcginnis in washington this morning. thank you, susan. ben bernanke also had big news for investors. the feds taking unprecedented action in keeping interest rates at their record-low levels. erica ferrari is here in new york with that. erica, good morning to you. >> good morning, terrell. for the first time ever, the fed said they would link its actions to specific economic milestones.

they said they'll keep the interest rate to 0% until the unemployment rate falls to below 6.5%. the jobless rate may not reach that point until 2015. it's at 7.7% now. rates will also stay low as long as inflation remains below 2.5%. the fed will continue its program of spending $85 billion a month on bond purchases. all of these steps are aimed at spurring borrowing and lending. and news from the federallied most asian markets. tokyo's nikkei added 1.5%. hong kong's hang seng lost a quarter percent. the dow lost nearly 3 points. the nasdaq was down 8. and the u.s. is on track to run up its fifth straight deficit or manufacture than a trillion dollars. the treasury department says the budget gap rose to $172 billion in november. that's up from $120 billion in october. tax revenue is up this year, but it's been outpaced by more spending. google maps are back on the iphone. the popular mapping system was

replaced as the built-in navigation system when apple upgraded the iphone's operating system. however, apple maps was so unpopular ceo's tim cook offered an apology. google says it's even better than the one that used to be on the iphone. and get ready for horrendous holiday traffic this year. aaa says more than 93 million americans could be on the road for the christmas travel season. that's nearly 2% more than last year and would make it the busiest travel season in six years. >> erica ferrari here in new york. erica, thank you so much. next week secretary of state hillary clinton will travel to capitol hill to testify about the attack on the u.s. consulate in benghazi, libya. she'll answer questions from the senate and house foreign affairs committees. four americans, including ambassador christopher stevens, were killed in the september 11th attack. clinton will testify after a report is released. there's been an escalation

of the civil war in syria. the united states and nato officials say syrian forces for the first time used scud ballistic missiles against rebel forces. incendiary bombs were also deployed by the troops. they say as they become more desperate, they're using more vicious weapons. it's estimated more than half a dozen scuds were fired in northern syria. meanwhile rebel troops continue to advance on the capital damascus. oregon police have identified a gunman who shot up a portland area malibu don't have a motive. they say jacob roberts apparently had no specific attack when he began tuesday afternoon. >> reporter: 10,000 people were in the mall when the shooting began. the rush of christmas shopping became a rush to survive. bob schwab was walking nearby. >> reporter: what did you hear? >> i heard bang, bang, bang, bang.

>> reporter: steven for sight who ran a business died at the food court. 15-year-old christina was seriously wounded. >> what she had to do to get out of the situation, it's clear to me she's a very brave young woman. >> reporter: the gunman knew none of his victims. >> i think we all need to be very thankful that this incident wasn't much worse. >> reporter: clackamas county sheriff craig roberts said the gunman was armed with an ar-15 semi-automatic rifle like this and carried several magazines of ammunition. >> based on the evidence we obtained it appeared that the suspect's rifle did jam while he was attacking individuals in the food court. >> reporter: the mall had just run through a drill preparing for just such an incident. stored gathered shoppers and locked their doors. police arrived at the mall within two minutes of the first 911 call, taking thousands out of the mall. witnesses say 22-year-old jacob roberts was wearing a hockey mask and yelled, "i am the

shooter" before he ran down a back hall and turned the gun on himself. roberts had no police record but his mother had seen his life going wrong for years. on her myspace web page she complained of his drug use and refusal to talk to her. in 2008 she wrote, i really thought he was growing up to be a man, and i'm afraid my son will end up in jail before he gets a clue. on the day of the shooting before roberts came to this mall, a neighbor saw him leaving his house with what appeared to be a guitar case. the sheriff says the gun used in the shooting was stolen from someone roberts new. john blackstone, clackamas mall, portland, oregon. yesterday software big wig john mcafee was in a jail. he awaits in a hotel this morning on a ritzy beach. mcafee arrivinged in miami last night. he had gone there, running from police in belize where he was wanted for questioning in a murder.

mcafee says he's not worried about being sent back to belize, and he'd be glad to answer questions in an american court. >> if i'm in an american court, there's nothing they have that will send me back. i have evidence about the corruption and harassment beginning with the attack on my property. of course, i'm not worried. i'd be happy to go before a judge, just not belize. >> police say no arrest warrant has been issued for mcafee. a mega concert from the boss to bon jovi. some of the biggest rock stars in the world got together at new york's madison square garden to help hurricane victims. this is the "morning news." s." [ female announcer ] born from the sweet monk fruit,

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was hoisted on top of the building wednesday. it took about 45 minutes to be lifted the 104 stories. eight pieces of the $20 million crown are already at the site. the remaining nine are being trucked in from new jersey and canada. just up the street from one world trade, a sign of recovery from superstorm sandy. thousands packed madison square garden for a rocking benefit conner is featuring some of the biggest names in entertainment, many of them holding a deeply personal connection to the ravage by the storm. ♪ i was raised out of steel and the swamps of jersey ♪ >> reporter: bruce springsteen got the crowd on its feet, kicking off the concert. and later joined another jersey boy jon bon jovi singing about the state hit hard by the storm. ♪ >> reporter: whilethe all-star cast of performers pulled in the audience, raising money to help victims of superstorm sandy was

the goal. >> we knew that the people who we were doing it for weren't going to be able to hear us, they weren't going to be able to see us, but we knew in our hearts that, you know, they knew that we were doing it for them. >> reporter: tickets to tee vent ranged from $150 to $2,500. organizers say from the ticket sales alone, the event raised more than $30 million. the concert streamed on the web and aired on television stations across the globe. producers say it was available to 2 billion people worldwide. all of them were asked to help. >> because you're going to love how it makes you feel. you're not going to believe the high you're going to feel from helping those of hurricane sandy. it's like huffing brotherhood. >> reporter: viewers at home were asked to phone in donations and get a chance to speak to move stars including the cast of

the most jersey television show, ""the sopranos."" >> i worked there when i was 12, 13 years old. the thing about it, it was like a mom and pop place, small stores. there weren't chance, there weren't large groups or anything, and now i think that might be destroyed. >> reporter: while the audience rocked to the rolling stones. ♪ >> reporter: or clapped along to eric clapton. ♪ >> they were reminded of sandy's devastation. >> i've been through quite a few hurricanes. never in my life did i see destruction like this. >> reporter: many of the night's performances had a personal touch. long island native billy joel

changed the words to his song, "seen the lights go out on broadway" from the storm created by sandy. ♪ >> reporter: and singer alicia keys, who was displaced from her home after the storm, was joined on stage by paul mccartney to close the night out with an ode to her hometown. ♪ >> if you want to help, you can can go to www.121212concert.org. all the proceeds go to the relief fund which promises direct aid to places assisting sandy storm victims.

coming up, your thursday weather. and in sports, the fur was flying in louisville as a fake fight quickly turned into an all-out brawl. n't. when you have migraines with fifteen or more headache days a month, you miss out on your life. you may have chronic migraine. go to mychronicmigraine.com to find a headache specialist. and don't live a maybe life. get to sears super saturday, with friday preview. coats are 19.99, and save even more with pass. get ½ carat diamond earrings for $49.99. plus, all craftsman wrench sets are on sale. this is how to gift. this is sears. capella university understands back from rough economic times. employees are being forced to do more with less. and the need for capable leaders is greater than ever. when you see these problems do you take a step back, or do you want to dive right in? with a degree in business from capella university, you'll have the knowledge to go further in your career than you ever thought possible.

let's get started at capella.edu here's look at the weather in here's look at the weather in cities around the country. in new york, 45 degrees. sunny. mostly sunshine in chicago, 46 degrees. turns cloudy in dallas, 62. rain ends in l.a., 61 degrees. let's check your national forecast. in the west, the storm that's been hitting the area will move

into southern california across to utah, bringing more rain and mountain snow. there could be some flooding in los angeles and las vegas. it will be dry across much of the midwest, northeast, and south, but expect random showers in parts of north carolina and eastern florida. in sports this morning the warriors shocked the heat at home. lebron james dropped in 31 points. he's now scored at least 20 points for 25 games in a row, the longest current streak in the nba. in the fourth, score tied. time running out. a wide open. he lays in the game-winner. warriors fly by miami. warriors now winners of five in a row. a thriller in salt lake. jazz down by two. paul millsap hits up. at the buzzer mo williams tosses one from long range and hits the big game-winner. jazz down san antonio, 99-96. and in kentucky the fur was flying during a high school basketball game between two very angry mascots. take a look at this.

the ram comes out and drop kicks the bulldog in the stomach. oh, you done done it now. and then the two go at it for real. the mascot melee happened during halftime between crosstown rivals in louisville on friday. eventually the supervisors had to separate them. the fury fighters. what i like about this, though, the mascot heads never come off. very professional, guys. that's how you do it. when we come back, a celebrity murderer plot. singer justin bieber is allegedly targeted in a bizarre murder-for-hire scheme. geted in a bizarre murd murder-for-hire scheme. but now, with zyrtec-d®, i have the proven allergy relief of zyrtec®, plus a powerful decongestant. zyrtec-d® lets me breath freer, so i can love the air. [ male announcer ] zyrtec-d®. behind the pharmacy counter. no prescription needed.

robbery suspects at c-s-u fullerton. plus: a hundred miles an hor through a bay area tunnel. n more surprising: the man bed the wheel. governor brown's newest figt isn't against lawmakers. his plan to beat cancer. and the search for answers w details about the gunman ine portland area mall shooting.

who he was and who were his victims. join us for cbs 5 eyewitness news this morning... beginn, here's a look at the weather in some cities around the country. in washington, sunny, 49 degrees. mostly sunny in atlanta. 58. sunny in st. louis, 52.

denver, sunny, 50. increasing clouds, seattle, 44 degrees. a bizarre report that a convicted murderer had a plan to kidnap and kill justin bieber. they were arrested in vermont about a week before bean 'eers concert. he's reportedly obsessed with the beesh but turned in tit ove to a would-be assassin. a high-speed chase in los angeles. a jewelry robbery, stole a car and raced through the streets. jumped out, ran through the baseball field filled with children where the l.a. police chief was giving away toys. the suspect event ueli gave up. the campus of cal state fullerton was put on lockdown while the police searched for another suspect. they were eventually given the all clear. officials say he may have been

tweeting from the university. one other suspect is still at large. now to an innovative way to smuggle marijuana across the border. they found canisters littering a field near the colorado river. police say they used pressurized cannon like the ones used during sporting events. fire in the hole. the smugglers apparently fill soup cans full of drugs and then launch them into the u.s. i'm terrell brown. this is the "cbs morning news." my doctor diagnosed it as fibromyalgia, thought to be the result of overactive nerves that cause chronic widespread pain. lyrica is believed to calm these nerves. i learned lyrica can provide significant relief from fibromyalgia pain. and for some people, it can work in as early as the first week of treatment. so now i can do more of the things that i enjoy. lyrica is not for everyone. lyrica may cause serious allergic reactions or suicidal thoughts or actions. tell your doctor right away if you have these, new or worsening depression, or unusual changes in mood or behavior, or any swelling or affected breathing or skin,

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drug smugglers have found a new way to fly under the radar of law enforcement. more and more are turning to sophisticated vessels to traffic illegal products. as it's reported it opens up a new front in the war on drugs. >> reporter: under this shed is big foot 2, a 60-foot semi-submarine captured by the u.s. coast guard in the caribbean in 2008. it cost just $2 million to

build, but was carrying $150 million in cocaine. vessels like this one are called semi-submersibles because they sale with their tops just above the surface to maintain an air supply for the crew. the semis move cocaine from colombia to central america where it's then transferred by land to the u.s. >> be careful. it's not solid. >> reporter: inside we found the semi-sub to be a floating warehouse with a huge space for drugs and little else. this is the pilot house of the big foot 2 semi-submersible. the helm, compass, controls, and very cramped quarters for a crew of four. another was caught by the coast guard in september of 2011 while patrolling drug-smuggling lanes. they intercepted this vessel near honduras. when a coast guard skiff closed in, the crew scuttled the sub and bailed. it sank within seconds. with an unknown cache of

cocaine just 80 feet below the surface, the coast guard feared they would try to retrieve the lost treasure, so the fbi's dive team was called. >> part of the whole mission is to get the drugs here to our country. so to leave them here would have left the job unfinished, so to speak. >> reporter: wearing underwater cameras, tim and his team cut into the submarine, finding the cocaine wrapped in waterproof pa packets. now the drug runners are turning to a more sophisticated harder-to-detect vessel. they have found them along rivers that connect to the sea. coast guard commander tom walsh worries about them with that kind of technology. it's one thing to move cocaine, and that's a problem. >> reporter: couldn't someone use a submersible for terrorist activity or arms running?

>> that's a big concern of ours. it would be perfect for terrorists wanting to move people or equipment or other items toward the united states. >> reporter: as for the men who jumped off the semi-submersible sub, they were arrested in the united states. coming up after your local news on "cbs this morning," new details about the gunman from the mall shooting. talks about the fiscal cler. we'll hear new details from jim demint. and a warning about the hidden fees in your hotel bill. how to spot them. that and more a little later on "cbs this morning." for now, though, that is the news for this thursday morning. i always appreciate you watching. i'm terrell brown in new york. thank you everybody. have a great day. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

and i'm michelle griego. tis 4:-- the san mateo bridge gianna franco is in the >> your realtime captioner: linda marie macdonald good morning. it's thursday, december 13. i'm frank mallicoat. >> i'm michelle griego. we have an accident, a fatal accident that started off as basically a routine call from chp on the san mateo bridge westbound side of the bridge on the peninsula side. it was a two-vehicle accident and one person died at the scene. so the coroner is called out. the right lane is blocked. they expect to have this shut down for the next hour or so. this is west 92 just as you head into foster city on the san mateo bridge. one lane will be completely shut down for an hour because of this fatal accident. use the dumbarton bridge or the bay bridge as an alternate in the meantime. we'll update you when we have more information. here'saw